Rotary engine



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

I. WANNER.

ROTARY ENGINE.

No. 569,693. Patented Oct. 20, 1896.

gal/711 58858.- aac INVENTOR CJAHZLMM ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATE PATENT FFICE.

isAAc WANNER, or VERA CRUZ, INDIANA.

ROTARY ENGIN E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 569,693, dated October20, 1896.

Application fil d December 13, 1895- Serial No. 572,084. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, IsAAc WANNER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Vera lruz, in the county of Allen, in the State of Indiana,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines; andI do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, which will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in rotary steam-engines which areadapted to be operated by any fluid under pressure; and its objects areto provide an improved engine of that class which shall be more perfectin its operation, conserve more power, and which can be moreeconomically manufactured and operated; and the invention consists inthe construction and novel combination of parts hereinafter described,pointed out in the appended claims, and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure 1 is an end view with parts broken away andpartly in cross-section. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the piston andits packing and the disk; and Fig. is a longitudinal section of Fig. 1,taken on the broken line no no.

The construction is as follows: A piston wheel or hub 4 is arrangedeccentricallywithin the cylinder 8, and is provided with two slots 5,radially opposite each other, for the reception of the pistons 15. Theseslots are made larger from their openings inwardly for the purpose ofafiording room for the variable positions of the piston within the slotduring its revolutions, and also to provide a smaller area of contactwith the piston at the periphery of the hub 4. Two disks 12, one on eachside of the pistonhub at, are provided or formed with beveledperipheries adapted to revolve in the beveled ends 9 of the cylinder 8,so that the beveled ends 9 of the cylinder form a valve-like seat forthe disks 12. These disks 12 have a central orifice 21, through whichthe driving-shaft 6 passes, and of such diameter as to permit its freerevolution without binding on the shaft 6. The cylinderheads 10 and thedisks 12 are constructed to have or provide a small space between them,

or port 11, through which steam is supplied to the engine. There are twosuch pipes to each space, connected, respectively, with the inductionand the eduction pipes or ports 11, one setof which is closed while theother set is in operation, one pipe 14 at each end of the cylinder. Whenthe engine is reversed, that set of pipes leis closed and the first setis opened. This is the preferable construction for supplying live steamto the spaces between the cylinder-heads 10 and the disks 12. Othermethods will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

The essential features are a space for the steam between thecylinder-heads l0 and the disks 12 and a steam-pipe for the supply oflive steam to such space. Such construction, in combination with thebeveled construction of the peripheries of the disks and inner ends ofthe cylinder, provides a tight bearing, causes the disks to alwaysrevolve upon an axis exactly coincident with that of the cylinder, andthe fitting of the joints is continually preserved and isself-adjusting. The piston-hub i is constructed to also have a bearingand form a steam-joint with the disks 12, the disks impinging equallyagainst the beveled edges of the cylinder 8 and the ends of the hub 4.As the parts wear the fitting becomes more perfect. The pressure of thelive steam back of the disks 12 forces them against all the bearings andcauses a friction that soon wears the parts to a uniform bearing if notso made perfectly in the first instance. The importance of this in arotary engine cannot be overestimated.

The pistons 15 are rigidly attached at their ends to the disks 12separately, that is, one piston to each disk, and at right angles to theplane of the disk, as shown in Fig. 2, and are provided with suitablepacking on their tops and free ends, preferably with the packinghereinafter described. This construction permits the pistons 15 to haveseparate and insurfaces, but not to make steam-joints.

dependent vibrations,which is a necessity for successful operation wherethere are two or more pistons rigidly attached to disks carrying them.It also permits a construction of packing that is automaticallyadjustable from use or wear, for where the vibrations are different ornot coincident with each other the wear on the friction-surfaces isnecessarily different, and where pistons are attached to disks orringeplates two or more pistons can not be used if the pistons arerigidly attached at both ends to both disks or plates, because therevolution of the pistons and the revolution of the piston-hub are ondifferent axes.

I prefer to pack the pistons so as to make the packing self-adjustableas it is worn by use. For such purpose I provide seats for metallicpacking -pieces 17, preferably by forming grooves 16 on the top and endsof the pistons 15. The metallic packing-pieces 17 fit in and are held inplace by these grooved seats. Coiled springs 18 are placed under them tokeep them in position against their bearing- The steam-tight joint ismade by the steam entering under and forcing itself against thesepacking-pieces,holding them tightly against the bearing-surfaces of thecylinder, pistonhub 4, and the disks, againstwhich they impinge. Apacking-piece 19 is placed in the cylinder between the induction andeduction ports 11 to form a joint between the cylinder 8 and thepiston-hub 4. Coiled springs .18 support it in position, and its actionis similar and of the same mode of operation as that of the pistons 15above described. The induction and eduction ports have both the samenumeral, 11, of reference, as they are reversiblein their functions asthe engine is reversed from right to left rotary movement.

The operation will readily appear from the drawings and the functionsand descriptions above set forth without further description.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as-new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a rotary engine, the combination of a cylinder provided withbeveled edges on its inner ends: a piston-hub arrangedeccentricallytherein: two disks for carrying the pistons provided withbeveled peripheries adapted to revolve in and against the beveled edgesof the cylinder and against the piston-hub: steam-pipes adapted todischarge live steam between the disks and cylinder-heads: two pistonsattached separately to the disks, one to each; and provided with seatsfor metallic packing pieces for said pistons: metallic pieces for saidpistons: a metallic piece placed within the cylinder between the ports:and springs placed under the metallic pieces to hold them in positionrespectively.

2. In a rotary engine, two disks for carrying two pistons independentlyof each other, provided with bevel-shaped peripheries and a cylinderhaving its ends beveled to form seats for the disks.

3. In a rotary engine, two disks for carrying two, pistons independentlyof each other adapted to be revolved against the ends of the cylinderrespectively in seats provided therefor, cylinder-heads placed so as toform a chamber between them and the disks, and steam -pipes forming acommunication between said chambers and the induction-port respectively.

4:. In a rotary engine, two disks placed at opposite ends of thecylinder in combination with two pistons rigidly attached, one to eachdisk, and the two disks with their respectively attached pistonsarranged to move independently of each other.

\rVitness my hand this 10th day of December, 1895.

ISAAC IVANNER.

In presence of H. O. HARTMAN, M. HARRIS.

